Candel Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CADL) Shares Gap Up - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Candel Therapeutics shares opened higher, rising from a prior close of $8.03 to $8.44 before trading near $7.98, with 40,184 shares changing hands.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: nine analysts rate CADL a Buy versus two Sells, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $21.43. Recent targets range from $18 to $25.
• The clinical-stage biotech reported a quarterly loss of $0.52 per share, missing the $0.24 consensus estimate, while analysts expect a full-year loss of $1.29 per share. Its pipeline focuses on engineered viral immunotherapies for cancer, including investigational candidate CAN-3110.

Shares of Candel Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CADL - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Monday. The stock had previously closed at $8.03, but opened at $8.44. Candel Therapeutics shares last traded at $7.9750, with a volume of 40,184 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on CADL shares. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Candel Therapeutics from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a report on Thursday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Candel Therapeutics in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Candel Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $21.43.

Candel Therapeutics Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $11.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.47. The company has a quick ratio of 16.09, a current ratio of 16.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $613.69 million, a P/E ratio of -5.69 and a beta of -0.32.

Candel Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CADL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported ($0.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by ($0.28). As a group, research analysts expect that Candel Therapeutics, Inc. will post -1.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CTO Seshu Tyagarajan sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total value of $84,000.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 76,865 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $922,380. This trade represents a 8.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 14.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Candel Therapeutics

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Candel Therapeutics in the second quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Candel Therapeutics during the first quarter worth $63,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Candel Therapeutics during the 2nd quarter valued at $175,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Candel Therapeutics in the 2nd quarter worth $301,000. Finally, Krilogy Financial LLC grew its position in Candel Therapeutics by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 30,065 shares of the company's stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 6,065 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.93% of the company's stock.

About Candel Therapeutics

Candel Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing biological immunotherapies designed to stimulate the immune system to recognize and attack cancer. The company's approach uses engineered viral therapies intended to promote immunogenic cell death and generate broader, potentially systemic antitumor immune responses.

Candel's pipeline includes CAN-3110, an investigational oncolytic immunotherapy based on a genetically engineered herpes simplex virus type 1.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.